making friends on twitter: the rules

Before Twitter, I was a Facebook junkie. It was a great venue through which I could keep in touch with friends and family anywhere in the world.

I got bored of Facebook very quickly.

When I started blogging, my husband introduced me to Twitter. I didn’t get it at first because it was nothing like Facebook. Twitter was just a bunch of status’ in a news feed and the feed was often overwhelming, especially during my first #wineparty experience.

Then, I met Carri. On Twitter she’s @CarriBrown and if you tweet her something funny or sarcastic, she’ll tweet you right back.

Carri has become a good friend of mine. I read her blog Mommy’s Little Monster Blake on a daily basis because her posts are witty, sarcastic, thoughtful and entertaining. Never a dull moment over at Carri’s place.

Today, she’s my guest and she’s here to tell us all a little bit about Twitter. Whether you know it or not, Twitter has rules.

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Twitter is like a friendship – you must give before you can take.

And yet all day long, tweeps (that’s Twitter peeps) commit sin after Twitter sin and risk losing the opportunity to make friends on Twitter.

Why do you need Twitter Friends?

As a blogger, networking is key and what better way to network than on Twitter? There are over an estimated 250 million users on Twitter, from your old high school buddies to your favorite celebrity!

Twitter allows you to broadcast whatever is on your mind in just 140 characters, earning it’s place as the “SMS of the Internet“. Since information streams so quickly on Twitter, it’s important to put your best food forward.

How do you make friends on Twitter?

Remember how I said that Twitter is like a friendship? Well, making friends on Twitter is a lot like making friends IRL (in real life).

–Be yourself! The best way to make friends on Twitter is to be yourself. Nobody likes a faker and nobody likes being lied to. Let all of your awesomeness show and you’re bound to find like minded tweeps!

– Participate in Twitter Parties. There are numerous Twitter parties that happen every week and the best part is you don’t need to RSVP! Love wine? Then join us for #wineparty, which starts every Friday at 6pm Eastern. Want to learn how to vlog? Follow the hashtag #vlogtalk on Tuesdays from 6 to 7pm Pacific. Mothers suffering or recovering from postpartum depression can join #PPDChat on Mondays at 1 and 8pm Eastern. Foodies can get their fix on Thursdays from 5-7pm Pacific by following #foodparty.

– Respond to @ mentions. Ignoring someone is rude. When a fellow tweep takes the time to @ mention you, respond.

– Follow back cool tweeps. Be sure you check for new followers and follow back tweeps you are interesting in hearing from. Sending them a quick @ mention to introduce yourself is always appreciated!

How do you lose Twitter friends?

Follow these simple steps to annoy your fellow tweeps:

– Constantly complain. We all have those days where we need to vent to anyone that will listen. But being a Debbie Downer won’t win you any friends, IRL or on Twitter.

– Auto DM. Do you like spam? Neither does anyone else. Sending an automatic “Thanks for following me! Here’s my blog URL” direct message is the quickest way to lose a new follower.

– Creep. Don’t be a creeper, which is basically another name for “stalker”.

– Don’t engage. Believe it or not, tweeps want to get to know the person behind the avitar. Seasoned Twitter users will check out your Twitter page before following you back. If you have nothing but RTs and links to your latest blog post, they are likely to pass on the follow back.

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Be sure to follow me @CarriBrown. I’m always open to meeting new tweeps!

Thank you, Bruna, for allowing me to share some of my Twitter knowledge!

Love this … yes, say hello when you start to follow … I am not good at Twitter at all and need reminding if we are chatting and I am not following you.
But I am old, and I will cling to that and hope for some leeway 😉

I see all the Twitter Queens are commenting here today – great company to be sure!

Thanks for this post. I have been on twitter for a while, but only just started using it on a regular basis and I love it. I love all the different people you can chat with and things you learn.
Happy Bloggy Anniversary Bruna:)

I was on Twitter for over a year before I started using it. It was so overwhelming at first and I felt like I was just talking to myself. But you’re right; there are so many cool tweeps and it’s a must do for any blogger!

The best part of the post is that you linked to creeperman!
Haha! Poor Jessica!
I committed all of the twitter sinns, except creep ehm and spam.
I was a real twitterdummie at first. (still am kinda)
Slowly but surely getting there!

Great post. I became a twitter junkie by default, since Facebook was getting on my last nerve. I follow people because they are interesting. I completely understand if they don’t follow back since I often follow people very different from me (on paper, at least). I haven’t mastered the whole “lists” thing yet. It’s great to interact with people around the world and find common ground and share a laugh. You can’t get that from Facebook, which caters to folks who have walked the same path you have — family, friends, jobs, neighborhoods, etc. Complaining? Well, I tend to think it’s okay to complain on Twitter, hey it’s not Facebook where everyone is perfect. The complaints can be amusing to read and often mirror other people’s experiences. If someone is complaining about something I can’t relate to, it’s okay, since it’ll be over in 140 characters or less. Sometimes the advice from relationship professionals and life coaches bring me down and smack of “let’s all just get along and be fabulous and happy” and I want to refer them to http://www.facebook.com . For me, when things get too plastic and predictable and preachy, well that’s what causes me to unfollow. And it is like making a new friend IRL — when my regulars are off-line for a while I find myself wondering how he/she is doing and what happened — even though these are people I’ve never met, seen and probably aren’t using their real names. So Twitter has been very good for me. I tolerate Facebook because I have to, but I enjoy Twitter. (Some of it I still don’t get, though, that’s the fun of it.)

For the longest time I couldn’t figure out Twitter, but have learned that all these tips are so very true! Esp ignoring an @. I know sometimes I get busy (or go to bed!) and don’t see it until later, but I try hard to make sure to acknowledge everyone.

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Welcome

Hi. I'm Bruna! Mother to 3 insanely cute and energetic girls. Wife to my best friend. First Grade teacher. My loves include food, travel, books, fashion and connecting with people. I'm a firm believer that we should always be learning and that parents are their children's most important teachers. Read More…

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